S.I. No. 318/2006 - Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Work at Height) Regulations 2006

1. The name and address of the person for whom the inspection was carried out.

2. The location of the work equipment inspected.

3. A description of the work equipment inspected.

4. The date and time of the inspection.

5. Details of any matter identified that could give rise to a risk to the safety or health of any employee.

6. Details of any action taken as a result of any matter identified in paragraph 5.

7. Details of any further action considered necessary.

8. The name and position of the person making the report.

GIVEN under my hand,

this 21

st

day of June 2006

_________________

LS

Tony Killeen

Minister of State at the

Department of Enterprise,

Trade and Employment.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

These Regulations transpose into Irish law the provisions of Council Directive 89/655/EEC of 30 November 1989 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for the use of work equipment by workers at work, as amended by Council Directive 95/63/EC of 5 December 1995 and Directive 2001/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2001, relating to the use of work equipment when carrying out work at a height.

The Regulations, are also based on the general principles of prevention in Schedule 3 to the

Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005

, whereby work is not carried out at height where it is reasonably practicable to carry out the work safely otherwise than at height. Where work at height is necessary, safe systems of work should be established and proper planning and organisation should take place.

The Regulations set out specific requirements for, inter alia, organisation, planning and risk assessment of work at height, avoidance of risks from work at height, selection of work equipment for work at height, inspection of work equipment, fragile surfaces and falling objects.

In addition, the regulations provide that the work equipment most suitable to ensure and maintain safe working conditions must be selected and collective protection measures must be given priority over personal protection measures.

The detailed requirements for the use of equipment such as ladders, scaffoldings and other working platforms as well as the requirements for fall protection systems, including nets airbags and rope-access, are set out in the Schedules to the Regulations.

The Regulations, inter alia, revoke and replace Regulations 25, 51 to 79, 83 and 87 and the definitions of “ladder”, “sloping roof”, “trestle scaffold” and “working platform” in Regulation 2(1) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2001 (

S.I. No 481 of 2001

) as amended.

The Regulations also revoke Regulation 23(2)(a) to (e) of the Safety, Health and Welfare (Offshore Installations) (Operations) Regulations 1991 (

S.I. No. 16 of 1991

) and Regulation 5 of the Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations 1960 (

S.I. No. 279 of 1960

).

1

O.J. No.L.195, 19.7.2001, p. 46.

1

O.J. No.L.195, 19.7.2001, p. 46.

9. Where a ladder or run of ladders rises a vertical distance of 9 metres or more above its base, sufficient safe landing areas or rest platforms shall be provided at suitable intervals where reasonably practicable.

10. A ladder shall be used in such a way that -

(a) a secure handhold and secure support are always available to the employee, and

(b) the employee can maintain a safe handhold when carrying a load unless, in the case of a step ladder, the maintenance of a handhold is not practicable when a load is carried, and the risk assessment has demonstrated that the use of a stepladder is justified because of -

(i) the low risk, and

(ii) the short duration of use.

SCHEDULE 7

Regulation 11

PARTICULARS TO BE INCLUDED IN A REPORT OF INSPECTION

11. (1) This Regulation applies only to work equipment to which Regulation 7 and Schedules 2 to 6 apply.

(2) An employer shall ensure that, where the safety of work equipment depends on how it is installed or assembled, it is not used after installation or assembly in any position unless it has been inspected in that position.

(3) Without prejudice to paragraphs (2) and (4), an employer shall ensure that work equipment exposed to conditions causing deterioration that is liable to result in dangerous situations is inspected -

(a) at suitable intervals, and

(b) where exceptional circumstances have occurred that are liable to jeopardise the safety of the work equipment, as soon as practicable following these exceptional circumstances.

(4) Without prejudice to paragraph (2), an employer shall ensure that a working platform -

(a) used for construction work, and

(b) from which an employee could fall 2 metres or more,

is not used in any position unless it has been inspected in that position within the previous 7 days or, in the case of a mobile working platform, inspected on the site, within the previous 7 days.

(5) A person carrying out an inspection of work equipment to which paragraph (4 applies shall -

(a) promptly prepare a report containing the particulars specified in Schedule 7, and

(b) within 24 hours of completing the inspection, provide the report, or a copy thereof, to the person on whose behalf the inspection was carried out.

(6) An employer receiving a report under paragraph (5) shall keep the report or a copy thereof -

(a) at the site where the inspection was carried out until the construction work is completed, and

(b) thereafter, at an office of the employer.

(7) An employer shall ensure that no work equipment under his or her control is used in another place of work, unless it is accompanied by evidence that the last inspection required to be carried out under this Regulation has been carried out.

(8) An employer shall ensure that the result of an inspection under this Regulation is recorded and kept available for inspection by inspectors of the Authority for 5 years from the date of inspection.

(9) Subject to paragraph (10), in this Regulation “inspection” means such visual or more rigorous inspection by a competent person as is appropriate for safety purposes, and includes any testing appropriate for those purposes.

(10) Where a thorough examination has been made of lifting equipment under a specific requirement of any of the relevant statutory provisions -

(a) it shall for the purposes of this Regulation, other than paragraph (4), be treated as an inspection of the lifting equipment, and

(b) where a report of such examination has been prepared under the relevant statutory provisions this report of examination shall for the purposes of paragraph (8) be treated as the recording of the inspection.

Checking of places of work at height.

12. An employer shall ensure that the surface and every parapet, permanent rail or other such fall protection measure at every place of work at height are checked visually prior to use and at appropriate intervals during use.

Amendment of the Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations 1960.

13. Regulation 5 of the Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations 1960 (

S.I. No. 279 of 1960

) is revoked.

Amendment of the Safety, Health and Welfare (Offshore Installations)(Operations Regulations 1991.

14. Subparagraphs (a) to (e) of Regulation 23(2) of the Safety, Health and Welfare (Offshore Installations)(Operations) Regulations 1991 (

S.I. No. 16 of 1991

) are revoked.

Amendment of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2001.

15. The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2001 (

S.I. No. 481 of 2001

) are amended -

(a) in Regulation 2(1), by deleting the following definitions

(i) “ladder”,

(ii) “sloping roof”,

(iii) “trestle scaffold”,

(iv) “working platform”,

and

(b) by revoking Regulations 25, 51 to 79, 83 and 87.

SCHEDULE 1

Regulation 5

REQUIREMENTS FOR EXISTING PLACES OF WORK AND MEANS OF ACCESS OR EGRESS AT HEIGHT

An existing place of work or means of access or egress at height shall -

(a) be stable and of sufficient strength and rigidity for the purpose for which it is intended to be or is being used,

(b) where applicable, rest on a stable, sufficiently strong surface,

(c) be of sufficient dimensions to permit the safe passage of employees and the safe use of any plant or materials required to be used and provide a safe working area having regard to the work to be carried out there,

(d) be provided with suitable and sufficient edge protection,

(e) possess a surface that has no gap -

(i) through which an employee could fall,

(ii) through which any material or object could fall and injure an employee, or

(iii) giving rise to other risk of injury to any employee, unless measures have been taken to ensure that no employee could be so injured,

(f) be so constructed, used and maintained in such condition, as to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable -

(i) the risk of slipping or tripping, or

(ii) any employee being caught between it and any adjacent structure,

and

(g) where it has moving parts, be prevented by appropriate devices from moving inadvertently during work at height.

SCHEDULE 2

Regulation 7(a)

REQUIREMENTS FOR GUARD-RAILS ETC.

STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS.

S.I. No. 318 of 2006

Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Work at Height) Regulations 2006

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

1.

Citation.

2.

Interpretation.

3.

Organisation and planning.

4.

Weather conditions.

5.

Avoidance of risks from work at height.

6.

Selection of work equipment for work at height.

7.

Requirements for particular work equipment.

8.

Fragile surfaces.

9.

Falling objects.

10.

Danger areas.

11.

Inspection of work equipment.

12.

Checking of places of work at height.

13.

Amendment of Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations 1960.

14.

Amendment of Safety, Health and Welfare (Offshore Installations)(Operations) Regulations 1991.

15.

Amendment of Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2001.

SCHEDULE 1

Requirements for existing places of work and means of access or egress at height.

SCHEDULE 2

Requirements for guard-rails etc.

SCHEDULE 3

Requirements for working platforms.

SCHEDULE 4

Requirements for collective safeguards for arresting falls.

SCHEDULE 5

Requirements for personal fall protection systems.

SCHEDULE 6

Requirements for ladders.

SCHEDULE 7

Particulars to be included in a report of inspection.

S.I. No. 318 of 2006

I, Tony Killeen, Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by

section 58

of the

Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005

(No. 10 of 2005) and the Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order 2005 (

S.I. No. 316 of 2005

)) and for the purpose of giving effect to Directive 2001/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2001

1

after consultation with the Health and Safety Authority, hereby make the following regulations

Citation.